03 May 2019

Rajah & Tann Asia’s member firms made the top FT25 list of Asia-Pacific Headquartered firm in a report released at the Financial Times (FT) Asia-Pacific Innovative Lawyers annual event, held recently in Hong Kong.

Debuted at 19th position, Indonesia’s Assegaf Hamzah & Partners was the only Indonesian law firm that made this year’s list. The firm was highly commended for the category of “Legal expertise - Accessing New Markets and Capital” for its work on the issuance of the world's first sovereign bond that is compliant with shariah finance as well as environmental ethical standards. In addition, Assegaf Hamzah & Partners was commended for “Business of law - New Products and Services” for the launch of its Competition Audit, a service to advise clients on risks and strategies in response to new Indonesian competition law.

Rajah & Tann Singapore was listed in the top FT25 list for the sixth consecutive year since the inaugural event in 2014. Ranked 12th, the firm was commended for the categories of legal expertise and business of law.

Rajah & Tann Asia Vice-Chairperson, Patrick Ang, said: “We are honoured to be recognised by FT once again. Innovation is at the heart of everything we do at Rajah & Tann, whether it is researching that elusive case law for clients, changing our business approach to empower young lawyers, or deploying the latest digital tool to transform our processes. Our culture of innovation stems from our commitment to delivering excellence to our clients whose unstinting support has led to this recognition.”

Rajah & Tann Singapore’s ground-breaking A$75 million catastrophe bond for Insurance Australia Group was commended for “Legal Expertise - Accessing New Markets & Capital category”. This deal marked the first insurance-linked securities transaction in Singapore. The firm was also recognised in the same category for “Enabling Business Growth and Transformation” for client in the Viva Industrial Trust’s merger with ESR-Reit using a trust scheme of arrangement, which was a first for Singapore.

Rajah & Tann Singapore was commended for “Business of Law - New Business and Service Delivery Models” for its acquisition of Legal Comet, a specialist legal tech company which focusses on e-discovery.

Rajah & Tann Singapore’s Deputy Head of Technology, Media & Telecommunications, Steve Tan, was identified as one of the “Top 10 legal innovators for Asia-Pacific region” for his work in data protection and cyber-security, having launched a new practice area in data protection law, and quickly establishing Rajah & Tann as the undisputed leader in this area at a time when Singapore was mulling data protection legislation.

He saw the advantage of being a first mover in the field and launched new services for clients including end-to-end multi-phase Personal Data Protection Act compliance programmes, externalised data protection officer services and the data breach readiness and response services to help organisations cope with the new legislation.

In addition, Mr Tan was the co-founder of Rajah & Tann Technologies, which sought to deliver new methods of providing integrated legal and technical services to clients.

Mr Tan said: “It is an honour for me to be recognised for work that is very close to my heart and that I enjoy doing. We are the go-to legal team for data protection and cybersecurity in Singapore because of our ability to understand clients’ needs as they transform themselves to embrace technology and navigate the digital economy, as well as our unwavering pursuit of quality and efficiency in our services.

“My colleagues and I are most excited about the technological changes sweeping through our profession as well as those of other industries. We want to be at the vanguard of such changes so that we can keep ourselves relevant to our clients’ needs. I will also continue to mentor young lawyers, equip them with solid and relevant skills and shape their thinking to become lawyers of the future.”

The 2019 FT Asia-Pacific Innovative Lawyers Awards, by the UK-based Financial Times celebrates the most innovative legal work in the region from both international and Asia-Pacific headquartered law firms and in-house legal teams. This year, 70 firms were shortlisted in one or more award category.

Last year, Rajah & Tann Technologies was named the 2018 Most Innovative Law Firm in the Business of Law for new business and service delivery models, and the 2016 FT Most Innovative Law Firm in ASEAN. It has been listed in its top FT25 list since the inaugural award event in 2014.

Other recent awards include the SE Asia Deal Firm of the Year, Law in Order International Arbitration Law Firm of the Year and Corporate Citizenship Law Firm of the Year at the ALB South East Asia Law Awards 2019, and Impact Case of the Year and Asia-Pacific CSR and Innovation Award at the Managing Intellectual Property Asia-Pacific Awards 2019.

Rajah & Tann Singapore is one of the largest full-service law firms in Singapore and South East Asia, with market leading practices in M&A, dispute resolution, international arbitration, shipping, insolvency, restructuring, capital markets, competition law, corporate and commercial, technology, media and telecommunications, among others. Through Rajah & Tann Asia, it is a member of one of the largest legal networks in ASEAN with over 750 fee earners.

Rajah & Tann Asia brings together leading law firms and lawyers in Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam, with each offering the highest standards of service to locally-based clients while collectively having the capability to handle the most complex regional and cross-border transactions and to provide excellent legal counsel seamlessly across the region. With over 750 fee earners, all working towards one shared goal, we are lawyers who know Asia and who give our clients home advantage.